UPDATE: Man, woman in custody at Level Acres

Two people are in custody at Level Acres after a stand-off in connection with a high-speed chase and shots fired at troopers earlier today.

After a stand-off in a Wellsville trailer park, state police apprehended a man and woman this afternoon in connection with a high-speed chase and shots fired at two troopers earlier today.

The suspects, whose names haven't been released, were apprehended at approximately 3:30 p.m. The man and woman were in a trailer at the Level Acres Trailer Park in Wellsville off State Route 19 south, which state police and SWAT teams surrounded earlier this afternoon.

Three loud explosions were heard earlier this afternoon, and tear gas was fired into the trailer. The man and woman suffered minor injuries. The woman is en route to a local hospital for treatment.

A reporter on scene said the SWAT team members are accompanied by National Guardsmen with full protective gear. One officer, with a bullhorn, is instructing the occupant or occupants of the trailer to come out immediately. "We have the place surrounded," was the message.

Police are also still looking for a gray truck they believe the suspects, described as a white male and female, abandoned after firing a shotgun at two state troopers early this morning during a high-speed chase. Police are searching the border area between Allegany and Steuben counties.

At approximately 3:10 a.m. Tuesday, two troopers in one cruiser attempted to stop a gray Ford F-150 with Pennsylvania license plates for several traffic and vehicle violations. Once the lights on the trooper vehicle were activated, the truck sped off, leading to a high-speed pursuit down County Route 66.

Turning right on Doorley Road, the truck spun around in a resident’s front lawn and sped back toward County Route 66, eventually side-swiping the trooper vehicle, causing damage to the passenger side of the state police car.

The chased ended up on Webb Road, where troopers continued the pursuit until the driver of the truck, described as a white male, slid open the back window of the truck and opened fire on the troopers with a shotgun or long gun, firing multiple shots. At least one of the rounds struck the cruiser, landing directly above the driver’s shoulder, said State Police Captain Scott Crosier.

“The troopers saw the shotgun come out, they had taken cover within the vehicle at the time, but the round was very close to striking them,” said Crosier.

The pursuing troopers then halted the pursuit after coming under fire, and were unable to later locate the truck. Crosier said the truck would have visible damage to its passenger side from colliding with the trooper’s vehicle.

Police have not located the truck, and are unsure whether the suspects remained with or abandoned the vehicle. The truck’s registration expired in 2004, and is described as a 1988 gray Ford pickup with a Pennsylvania license plate YLL-6632.

Sources confirmed that two people initially viewed as suspects have been partially cleared, but police are looking for two additional suspects.

The names of the troopers involved has not been released, but one trooper is from the Wayland-based barracks and another from the North Hornell barracks. Crosier added that they are unsure at this time of how many rounds were fired at the troopers. No injuries were reported from the incident.

State police said there is no reason to believe at this time that the incident on Tuesday was connected to the drive-by shooting in Hornell Sunday night. A shotgun was used in the drive-by shooting Sunday.

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